


Let's Be Afraid Together

by walleye26



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Babyfic, F/M, Newborn Children, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:47:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,424
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26823160
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/walleye26/pseuds/walleye26
Summary: Dimitri knows that something has been bothering his wife, and he'll do anything to fix whatever that is. But it soon becomes apparent that Byleth's worries are meant to be tackled by both of them, together, and what lies ahead might be scarier than anything they've faced before.
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Dedue Molinaro, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/My Unit | Byleth, Felix Hugo Fraldarius/Bernadetta von Varley
Comments: 2
Kudos: 109





	Let's Be Afraid Together

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this in 3 hours last night on a whim because somebody told me that the well of 3H babyfic was starting to run dry. I've never written any of the characters in this story so we'll see how this goes.

There was something unsettling about the way she looked. Now, that probably wasn't a very polite thing for Dimitri to think about his own wife, but it was true. A hand pressed against the window, her breath forming a small circle against the glass. She was watching something, and whatever it was, she seemed different. Something about her had changed.

Now in the many years Dimitri had known Byleth, she had changed quite a bit. Physically, mentally, and even in ways that Dimitri couldn't truly comprehend. The change he was seeing now though, as her hand slowly slipped off the frosty glass and came to a rest at her side, was different. It had seemed to come out of nowhere, with little explanation. But the source didn't matter to Dimitri. All that mattered was that something was bothering his beloved wife.

"You've been at the window for quite some time," Dimitri remarked as he walked over to Byleth, his boots pounding against the stone floor of the castle. He moved carefully, feeling the aches and pains of a war now long over. As he did, Byleth drew her gaze from the window and gave a soft smile. The light streaming in through the glass reflected off her hair that gave it an almost divine glow. Or perhaps, given the woman's history, an actual divine glow.

"Is something the matter?" Dimitri asked, coming to a stop in front of his wife. Clearly something was, but it wouldn't do either of them any good if he were to start interrogating her.

Byleth reached out to take one of Dimitri's gloved hands. Her hands, by the goddess, how Dimitri loved her hands. How so much warmth could come from hands so small, Dimitri would never know. Still silent, Byleth turned back to the window. Maybe it was going to be one of those conversations. One where Byleth didn't say a word and yet her silence would speak volumes as Dimitri's own voice bounced off of her. Or maybe she was just considering her words until she could come up with the perfect thing to say.

"Yes," she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper, "but it will pass." With her free hand, she reached out to touch the half-print of her palm that had been left on the glass. Her voice had an unfamiliar hollowness to it. Dimitri gave the hand he was holding a soft squeeze.

"That may be," he said, "but that does not mean you must shoulder it alone until it does. Please, allow me to carry this weight with you." They had been through so much together. War, death, unholy abominations, and finally love. Their marriage had only been the first steppingstone in a larger path that they would walk together. Rebuilding the kingdom, reforming the church, piecing together the rest of Fόdlan…it was all one thing after another. They were not always on the same side when it came down to the details, but at the end of the day the lives they led were ones they shared with each other. While the reform was not finished and Fόdlan was still uncertain of its future, Dimitri would gladly lay all of those issues aside to help his wife.

Byleth seemed to think similarly, as she turned to take both of Dimitri's hands now, sending jolts of heavenly warmth through his palms and up his arms. The two stood like that for a while, taking one another in as their eyes remained locked together. Then, together, they turned to look out the window so that Dimitri could finally see just what had kept his wife's interest for such a long time. He knew the window overlooked a large courtyard, but with the wind howling as it often did he couldn't hear anything more than usual bustle of people.

Looking to his wife for guidance and then following her gaze, Dimitri's eyes fell upon the source of Byleth's newfound feelings, which he would later come to realize were feelings of insecurity that he didn't think she was even capable of possessing. But for now, he held his wife's hands as he stared down at a man and woman walking in circles around the courtyard, laughing and swinging their arms as they each held the hand of a small child standing between them.

Dimitri exhaled, his own breath now starting to fog up some of the glass. He turned to look at Byleth, who was still focused on what was happening outside the window. While he would later discover her insecurities, in the moment he could register something else his wife was feeling. Longing. A longing for what the couple in the courtyard had that she and Dimitri did not. A longing for something that they had never talked about, something that nobody else had ever talked about regarding them, and yet in that moment, it was the only thing that Dimitri wanted for them.

There were complications, of course. Complications were to be expected, but these seemed different. By now, Dimitri had been without his parents longer than he had been with them. While he was determined not to forget the dead, his memories served little use in the practical applications he was faced with now. Losing his parents had caused him so much pain as a child, could he really bring himself to potentially subject someone else to that same pain? It was natural for a king to have heirs, he had reasoned, but this decision was so much more than about continuing a bloodline. As Fόdlan continued to find itself, through the good and the bad, Dimitri wondered just what sort of world he would be bringing a child into, and if he would be able to live with the consequences.

They told very few people, mostly in hushed conversations to obtain advice. Felix had been, naturally, unhelpful. They had been discussing the matter as Dimitri witnessed him aiming a kick at one of the small, blue-haired boys that was known to run around one of the more cloistered wings of Fhirdiad's castle. The boy tumbled out of the way with such speed that Dimitri quickly realized he had never been in any danger at all. As another boy soon came running out of the shadows and Felix repeated the kicking motion, Dimitri realized it was a game.

"Children are so easy they're almost boring," Felix said when none of the children were actually within earshot. "When they're young, they're almost like animals. You should have no trouble understanding that." Dimitri had long grown used to Felix's less than pleasant habit of comparing him to animals.

"I'm sure that's easy for you to say," Dimitri shot back. "What with you traveling so often, usually your wife is the one who has to be around them. I'd like to hear what she has to say about it."

"Hmph. Good luck. I haven't the slightest idea where's she gotten herself holed up today. With how cold it is, I'll be lucky to find her before bed."

Dimitri sighed, knowing that if Felix was unable to locate his wife, he wouldn't have any better luck himself. "I'm just worried, Felix," he said. "My parents' deaths brought me so much pain. How can I possibly risk bringing that same pain to a child of my own?"

Felix's eyes narrowed. "Don't speak as if you aren't in the company of someone who has experienced plenty of his own loss," he said. "If you think that not dying is what makes someone a good father, you clearly aren't ready to be one, understand?"

"I'm sorry, Felix. That's not what I meant. Thank you."

"Pffft. Whatever." Felix aimed another fake kick at the same boy from before, who ran off laughing into the shadows.

In an equally unsurprising turn of events, Byleth had understood Dimitir's fears. They were very similar in that regard. He had lost his mother at a young age, while she had never known hers. He had witnessed his father's murder. So had she. Many of their friends had lost parents, and continued to have children, but that didn't stop Dimitri's worries. However, he could put them aside to help Byleth through hers.

Seeing Byleth so uncertain of herself was new to Dimitri. She was known for her ability to control armies, classrooms, and of course her own actions. Sometimes she seemed so in control, it seemed like her actions weren't entirely her own but those of a guiding force. This was different. While being parents was a shared responsibility, it would be Byleth who would actually carry the child. Could she do that? In her talks with Dimitri, she expressed worry that she would succumb to the same fate as her mother and Dimitri would be left alone with a child just like herself. She couldn't bare to put him through that.

Dimitri had tried to soothe her fears, but when he did, she gently took his hand and placed it on her chest. Nothing. No heartbeat, just another mystery in Byleth's life that fed into her fears of what would happen if they tried to conceive a child. As she explained it, at best they may simply be unable to conceive. But at worst, Dimitri would be left alone. That was something Byleth refused to let happen. And yet, with each passing day she seemed to spend more and more time watching parents with their children walking around the castle grounds.

"We don't know what will happen," Dimitri said one night. Byleth had been silent from the moment she had seen a woman carrying a newborn into the castle. "Losing you would be an unbearable loss. But I cannot bear to see you like this. If there is a way for us to make this happen, I would be willing to try. Would you?" Byleth stared at him, before smiling and nodding her head.

It had taken a few tries Dimitri had been embarrassed to admit. Neither of them was particularly knowledgeable about the human body, and after consulting qualified healers in a manner of utmost secrecy, they had managed to try at a time that would have the highest chance for success. Dimitri was still somewhat confused by it, and when Dedue had attempted to explain it as comparison to crop yields the King of Faerghus was even more mortified.

"Forgive me Your Highness," Dedue said with an amused look on his face. "I don't intend to cause you discomfort. That is just the easiest way for me to explain it. I believe you are likely to have had a successful conception, and I look forward to seeing your child. If you would like, I could discuss with Annette the possibility of us having a child as well. That way your heir is likely to have a retainer-"

"That is very much not necessary Dedue!" Dimitri yelped, standing up. "I would never want to impose such a big change on you or Annette. You have my blessing to, erm, have a child when the two of you are ready. And please, do not coordinate it with the birth of my own child."

"If that is what you wish, Your Highness," Dedue said with a respectful bow as Dimitri hurried out of the room.

Dedue had been correct in his prediction, however, and soon Byleth was carrying what would become the first heir to the throne. Their friends had been overjoyed and were constantly dropping by with gifts for the unborn child and with bits of advice that they had picked up in their own pursuits of parenthood.

"Promise me that you'll love that child no matter what Crest they have or don't have," Sylvain had said in one of the rare moments he was actually serious. He had burst into the throne room one day and demanded to speak with Dimitri and Byleth immediately. From there, he had reminded them of his late older brother and the pain that nobles who favor Crests can bring to their children. While Dimitri was quick to promise that the presence of a Crest was the least of their concerns (and the lack of one would probably be a relief to them both), it wasn't until Byleth spoke that Sylvain was calmed down.

"We just want our child to be healthy," she said, placing a hand on her stomach. "Crest or no Crest." She said it with such certainty that Sylvain seemed to relax immediately.

"Yeah," Sylvain said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, "sorry about that Your Highnesses. I know you two are gonna be great parents. It's just…" The pair nodded, not needing much more of an explanation. The two of them were pleased to get Sylvain's vote of confidence and felt even happier that their child already had people looking out for them.

There were still fears in the back of both their minds. Dimitri feared leaving his child with nothing but sorrow. Byleth feared leaving Dimitri just like everyone else had. Even as the days went by and then weeks and months and finally the moment they had been waiting for arrived, the fears lingered. Even as Dimitri held the tiny baby boy swaddled in dark blue blankets, the fears were still there. He didn't think they would ever go away now, not as he stared down at those bright green eyes.

Byleth laid in her bed, looking exhausted but very much alive. The healer stood in the corner of the room, writing things down and assuring them that everything had gone as expected. Dimitri brought the newborn back over to his wife, who quickly took the bundle into her arms. She reached out to grab one of Dimitri's hands as she gently put an ear up to the baby's chest.

"Can you hear anything?" Dimitri asked. Byleth was silent for a moment, before she slowly raised the baby up toward her husband. Dimitri leaned down so his own ear was against the now fussing baby's chest.

At first, he didn't hear anything but his son's whimpering, but then…a heartbeat. He raised his head as Byleth lowered the baby back down so she could get a better look at him. Dimitri reached out to take one of her hands in his. As the baby calmed down, the two stared at one another through misty eyes. They had braved war, betrayal, and demonic beasts together. Now they would brave a new challenge, and neither of them planned on going anywhere.

**Author's Note:**

> N'aww. That was more fun than I was expecting to be. Hope you all enjoyed it~


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